The Attorney General (AG) has granted the National Petroleum Authority (NPA) prosecution authority to pursue cases involving crimes in the nation’s oil supply chain.
The NPA will be able to ensure effective prosecution of cases in the petroleum downstream business and stop the flow of crime in the sector thanks to the Executive Instrument (EI) 378, which the Authority got in 2020.
At a media event in Cape Coast, Ms. Farida Ali-Musah, the legal manager of the NPA’s Legal Directorate, said this.
She stated that up until this point, the NPA had depended on the AG and the police to pursue cases.
Some of the cases, according to Ms. Ali-Musah, were dismissed from the courts for lack of prosecution.
She said that the business has seen significant change since Act 691, which established the NPA, was passed in 2005.
She argued that in order to strengthen its regulatory role, the Authority must possess prosecution authority.
The misuse of the regulated petroleum price formula, operating without an NPA-certified licence, and interfering with Bulk Road Vehicle (BRV) tracking and volume monitoring were all listed by Ms Ali-Musah as offences that will be punished.
Others are false statements and withholding of material information, obstruction or interference with investigation and selling unmarked fuel.
Some of the crimes would attract sentences between five and 10 years.
Ms Ali-Musah said the NPA had started stakeholder consultations to pave the way for the start of the prosecution process.
